This is Their Story
by grumpyjenn
Summary: A story about friendship, trust, tolerance and romance. Starts the first time they get to the Calm Lands. Rated T for implied sex. Wakka/Rikku, Auron/Lulu and later Wakka/Lulu
1. Worried in the Calm Lands

The Calm Lands. Wakka had always wanted to see them. But not like this. Yevon was a sham… or at the very least incredibly corrupt. From what they had seen, Maester Kelk Ronso was the only ranking churchman with any faith or honor at all. He hadn't liked Maester Seymour from first meeting but… well; he was a Maester and therefore deserving of respect. Until he wasn't. Until he proved that he wasn't, and the rest of them weren't. And it seemed that the Al Bhed _were_. Like the rest of the people of Spira, he imagined some Al Bhed were not good people. But some were. _She_ was. Rikku. And he had treated her so… so… shabbily. He had treated her as though she wasn't even a person. He had a lot to atone for, and he had to start with her. He sighed.

Rikku looked around at the vast land in front of them. It was huge and it made her feel very small by comparison. She checked their store of potions and the like. Wow, they were really low. Phoenix Downs all gone, a couple of Hi Potions and one Al Bhed Potion – those were all they had left after all the fighting at Bevelle. Had she not stolen enough to last them? Was it _her_ fault they might die here on this plain? She sighed and motioned Lulu over.

"We'll just have to use them sparingly, Rikku. It couldn't be helped," Lulu said in an undertone. No sense in scaring the others, she thought, but they would need to be told soon… if there was no place nearby to rest... she shook her head – it didn't bear thinking about. She caught the girl's downcast look. "Don't worry. It's not your fault." She switched her focus. "Yuna? Go easy on the healing spells… and everyone be careful… we're running low on potions of all kinds." Yuna bowed quickly and said, "I will." The rest murmured agreement. Except Sir Auron, who just grunted. She wondered whether he had emotions; he was always so very calm. Then she remembered what he had said to Seymour about Kinoc having been his friend once, and she sighed. He had them. He just chose not to show them.

Auron looked out over the land. So many memories awaited him here. Lulu had many memories here too, if he was not mistaken. He looked over at the Black Mage, his eyes as always hidden behind his dark glasses. She was so… melancholy, even when she was smiling. She had had a rough time in her twenty-two years and he knew it. Of them all, Kimahri and Lulu were the only ones who seemed like adults to him. Yuna and the others were so young – literally children – and Wakka, although older than Lulu by a year, was so generally happy-go-lucky ("ya?" he thought to himself with an inner smile) that he seemed much younger than his age. Auron wished none of them had to be here at all, but it had to be hardest on Lulu. He sighed.

"Right," he said gruffly, "Rikku, I need you to steal as many healing items as you possibly can." She grinned cheekily at him and saluted. "Yuna, if you would, please save the Aeons until we absolutely need them." She bowed quickly again. "Lulu, you're on things that don't respond well to physical attacks, Wakka on flyers and the rest of us will take the ground fiends that want to get physical. All is as usual except for going sparingly with the healing. Let's go." They stared at him. For Sir Auron, this was a long speech. He raised a sardonic eyebrow and gestured toward the plain laid out before them.

CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!

"Who called these the Calm Lands?" Wakka yelled over the noise of yet another group of attacking fiends, "They don't seem calm to me, ya?" Rikku laughed and said, "You're absolutely right about that, ya?" as she stole a – damn, not a healing item; it was another Grenade. She shrugged and Mugged the critter, getting – oh boy another Grenade – and dispatching it. She wiggled a little victory dance, but then sobered; Yuna was out of magic, the last potion of any kind was gone, and all she seemed able to steal were freaking Grenades.

CRASH!

"Oh no," Wakka thought. All the others had fallen in the last battle and were barely conscious. Only he and Rikku were still up and moving around, and he could_ see_ the resting spot from here. Just this one last fiend and they'd be safe, but they'd barely touched it and… and then she screamed, as the Coeurl hit her with a Thundara attack and she dropped like a stone. He shouted her name in despair and threw the Blitzball as hard as he could, sizzling with Water energy. The Coeurl went up in a cloud of pyreflies and he didn't even wait to retrieve the ball before he dropped to his knees by Rikku's crumpled form. "I'm so sorry, Rikku, so sorry. I didn't know, I didn't mean it, please don't die, you can't die now, ya? Please, please don't die! Rikku. Rikku!"

She opened her eyes, smiled weakly at him, and whispered, "Is Yunie safe?"He gathered her unresisting little body into his lap and whispered in her ear. "Yuna's fine, ya? Look, there they are, walking into the rest area now. Can you make it there if I help you?" She just sighed and snuggled into his chest, feeling safe for the first time in weeks. He lifted her (she was so tiny!) and carried her to the rest area, laying her gently on the ground next to the Save Sphere. She smiled at him and fainted dead away.


	2. Love Stories in the Calm Lands

"I don't care why she's unconscious; I just want her awake and talking!"

"Calm down, Wakka. She'll be fine. You and she took the brunt of that last battle and she's exhausted on top of her injuries."

"Ya, and about the injuries; why didn't the Save Sphere or the Hi Potions wake her up? Look, the cuts and burns are healed; why isn't she awake?"

"I told you, Wakka. She. Is. Exhausted." Lulu put a comforting hand on Wakka's arm. "Yuna says she'll be fine with a good night's sleep".

Wakka sagged with relief. "I know. It's just, Lu, I was so unkind to her, and I didn't really get a chance to tell her, ya?, and when she screamed and fell I just…" He spread his hands helplessly. "I need her to be okay, ya, Lu? I need to tell her I was wrong." He hung his head.

"You were an ass, Wakka." It was Auron, seemingly appeared behind them. Wakka groaned, his head in his hands. "I know, I _know_. Sir Auron, what if she doesn't wake up? What if she… you know… before I can tell her I was wrong, ya?" Auron grunted. "Yuna says she'll be fine. Lulu backs her up. That's enough for me." He studied Wakka, kneeling in the dirt by Rikku's prone form, and sighed. "You children rest now. Lulu, come with me." He walked away, Lulu following in his wake.

As the two older Guardians got out of earshot, Lulu spoke up. "Thank you, Sir Auron. I was wishing I could cast a Silence spell there." He stopped, turned, and looked at her closely. "I must ask you some questions which are none of my business, because they may affect Yuna's pilgrimage." When she just inclined her head slightly, he continued, "It is clear to me that Yuna and Tidus shared… a moment… back there in Macalania Woods". She nodded again. "You know Yuna best of us all, Lulu. Is this – incident – going to affect her pilgrimage?" She looked more closely at him. Why, he was actually _blushing_ slightly around the ears. She said, "Yuna will not be swayed by – an incident – like that one. In fact, it will probably be good for her. I'm sure it was a first for her; most men her age feel that Summoners are… untouchable."

He nodded. "Good. And the others?"

"You mean Wakka and Rikku? A relationship of that sort would be good for him, and I don't think it would hurt her at all. He's a _good _man, Auron, with a few blind spots. She seems to have opened his eyes to at least one of those spots, which is all to the good. I can't speak for Kimahri. As for me, well… I lost something very precious the last time I was in the Calm Lands. Right now I need to focus on getting Yuna safely to Gagazet. But after…" She gave him a whimsical little smile. "After… who knows?"

He looked sharply at her. She was _flirting _with him. He nodded his head once, very slowly. "Indeed."

Rikku was beginning to become aware of things around her. She seemed to be lying on the ground, but her head was pillowed on something elevated and she could hear that slight high-pitched humming sound that indicated a Save Sphere nearby. And who was stroking her hair back from her forehead, humming the Hymn of the Fayth? She slowly opened her eyes, and looked up at Wakka. His eyes were closed as he gently stroked her forehead to the rhythm of the hymn he was humming. She reached up and gently put her hand over the one in her hair. His eyes opened and the song stopped abruptly. "Don't stop," she whispered, "it's nice. I didn't know your voice was so good". He smiled at her and began the song again. This time he sang the words. She began to sing along with him, weakly, but he looked at her in surprise. He hadn't known she'd know the words. It was just another indication that he had been wrong about the Al Behd, ya? Come to think of it, the men on her father's machina ship had sung it too, when they had to destroy their Home. His voice faltered as his throat closed up with guilt.

"Aww, Wakka, why'd you stop singing? It was nice." He stared at her, aghast that he had believed such awful things about her and all her people, based on lies from the priesthood of Yevon. And here he was, singing their song with her? He could have kicked himself. "I… Rikku, I… I didn't mean it, Rikku. I mean, I meant it then, ya? But I didn't know any better and now I…" She looked at him perplexedly. "Wakka, what are you talking about?" He pulled her up to a sitting position so he could look into her eyes. "I… Rikku, that song is of Yevon, and I… I believed such horrible things about the Al Behd because of Yevon, and then I sang you their – the Temples' – song, and I…" He stopped when she put her hand over his mouth. "Wakka. Don't go from thinking Al Behd are all infidels to thinking we're all saints. We're not. We're people, ya know? Just people, who fight and play, hate and… and love. It's not Yevon or the Fayth we have a problem with. It's the temple's sacrifice of the Summoners. The Hymn belongs to the Fayth, not to the Temples." She reached up, took his face in her tiny hands, and kissed him gently on the lips.

He froze, not sure what to do. It started out as a gentle, friendly kiss, but now… she was kissing him and he was kissing her back and it felt so good and his heart was racing like he'd been playing Blitzball for hours and he had the brief thought that it was a good thing they could both survive underwater for a long time because neither of them were going to breathe anytime soon if this kiss kept going like this and then she put her arms around him and clung to him, her compact little body molding to his and he broke off the kiss, breathing raggedly and looked into her eyes. The spiral-pupiled green gazed steadily back at his brown and she grinned. "Well! That was more than I expected! Don't look so shocked, Wakka; haven't you ever kissed a girl before?"

Not like that, he hadn't. He thought about telling her so, but there was a sound of a clearing throat behind him. He sighed, squeezed her hand, and looked up at Kimahri.

"Kimahri have food ready. If Rikku and Wakka done with play time."


	3. Stolen Fayth and Stolen Kisses

Love and Fayth

Lulu hated this place. The first Summoner she had guarded had died here, in the valley gorge near the stolen Fayth. While she had grown quite fond of Tidus, and acknowledged that he was good for Yuna, there she was, wanting that Silence spell again. Did the boy _ever_ stop talking? She looked at Auron. Huh, they had known each other for years… maybe Tidus' chatter was to make up for Auron's taciturn tendencies. She shrugged and took a deep breath. She would get through this somehow.

Auron looked at the Black Mage. She was always quiet and a little sad, but she seemed to be getting more and more withdrawn and tense as they crossed the Calm Lands. Now that they were near the Gorge and the Cavern of Stolen Fayth, she was silent and morose. He watched her carefully from behind his dark glasses; if she was going to break down he wanted as much warning as possible.

Rikku was wondering about Lulu too. She admired the older woman and was worried that Lulu seemed upset. They had defeated that Defender X the Guado had produced fairly handily, and without getting hurt much, and they were all stocked up on supplies; why was Lulu even quieter than usual? So when Tidus started walking around the bridge to the side, chattering as always (Rikku was amazed that he could talk more – and faster – than she could) and Lulu blanched as she explained what was down there, she felt a surge of sympathy for the Black Mage. Unusual; mostly she felt respect and a little envy.

Wakka was worried about Lu. This was where her former Summoner had died, and he was pretty sure she was handling it alone, rather than asking for support from her fellow Guardians. Her friends. She needed them, but she wouldn't ask them. He shook his head and sighed when Tidus stuck his foot in it again; Tidus was a great kid but man, he sure was a _kid_, ya? Always saying the wrong thing… sort of like Wakka himself, he admitted privately.

They defeated Yojimbo, the Aeon of Lulu's first Summoner, and Sent her spirit to the Farplane.

That night, in her tent pitched by the Save Sphere outside the Cavern, Lulu lay awake. For the first time in years, she let herself cry. She cried for the Summoner, for Yuna, for Chappu. She cried for all the Summoners and Guardians who had faced Sin or who – like Yuna – hadn't gotten that far. She cried for her people, all the Spirans who believed not only in Yevon but in His corrupt church. Eventually, she fell asleep, tears drying on her face.

Auron stood outside Lulu's tent, standing guard against the Fiends abroad in the night. He listened to her sobs – although she tried to muffle them – and warned Tidus off with a glare and a "Go. Get more sleep," rather than let the over-curious boy hear the heartbroken weeping within the tent. Poor Lulu, he thought, the last thing she needs is a perky blond kid in her face trying to help. When the sobs finally subsided, and Kimahri emerged from a neighboring tent, they nodded to each other as Kimahri took the watch from Auron. He sighed and went to bed in his own tent.

"Auron? Auron. Wake up." He heard a feminine voice, and sat up immediately. "Lulu, what is it? Is everyone all right?" He could see the traces of her weeping on her face, but she smiled at him and he relaxed. "I… Auron, I don't want to be alone tonight. I want to be with you. May I?" For a moment, he didn't answer; he just looked steadily at her. He realized that she had dropped the "Sir", and wondered what it meant. She held his gaze, thinking that this was the first time outside a Memory Sphere that she had seen him without his dark glasses. He looked younger and less… implacable without them. She raised an eyebrow in question. He said, softly, "You know what I am." She nodded and said, "Yes. I figured it out in Guadosalam, when you wouldn't go to the Farplane." He looked at her incredulously, whispering, "and it doesn't matter to you?" She shifted slightly. "Auron. Your body reacts as though it is alive. You bleed, you need to sleep and eat, you…" she glanced down, turned pink. "Let's just say that your body is working. You even blush. Your soul is obviously still here or you would not have asked the question. I like the combination package. May I stay?" He studied her face, the red-brown eyes and the traces of tears on her cheeks. He nodded once and reached out to her.

She met him halfway. She kissed him gently on the scar over his eye, showed him which of her many belts was the key to removing her skirt, and traded him move for move, kiss for kiss. He was gentle and kind and restrained under that gruff exterior, although it was difficult for him. In the dark and the quiet, Lulu and Auron comforted each other in the oldest manner humankind knew. It proved to them both that they were – on some level – still alive.

Kimahri stood at attention on watch. The humans of his little band all seemed to have paired off, which amused him. What did not amuse him was their next stop. He suspected – no he _knew _– that even if Maester Kelk believed that Yuna was innocent of the charges leveled against her, Kimahri would still have to deal with Biran and Yenke. He smiled, grimly, in the way of his people. He was looking forward to it.


	4. Gagazet and Beyond

Gagazet

Auron watched with a certain fond pride as Yuna – sweet, soft-spoken Yuna – faced down the Ronso maester. And he nearly laughed aloud when the Maester himself – all eight feet of him, not counting his horn – acknowledged that while she was soft and gentle, she had a stronger will than the Ronso.

Lulu rolled her eyes. She should have known that those Ronso bullies couldn't leave Kimahri alone. She supposed that males of all species were stupid about things like that. And Kimahri did win the fight, after all… so the visit to the Ronso settlement earned them respect for _two_ of their fellowship. Not bad.

Wakka didn't like seeing himself in the two Ronso bullies. True, their dislike for Kimahri was more personal than racial, but it was still unreasoning. He looked at Rikku, who gave him a cheery wink, which lightened his mood considerably. At least he had redeemed himself with _her_… she didn't think he was a racist ass anymore.

Rikku couldn't believe it. Again? Why would this Seymour just not die? Then it hit her. He had killed the Ronso._ All_ the Ronso. When she took a hit and went down she was glad. It meant a few minutes of not having to face anything hard. Not Yuna's pilgrimage, not what Seymour had done. Just the quiet.

But they survived it. And they went on.

Something had happened to Tidus when he was unconscious in the Chamber with all the Fayth inside – something more than the blacking out and dreaming he claimed. Wakka and Rikku were sure of it, especially after all the time the three of them spent fighting together in the watery caverns on the way to the pinnacle. Tidus was quieter, more mature, and it had happened awfully quickly to be just the realization that they were nearing the end of the pilgrimage.

By the time they defeated the Sanctuary Keeper, Rikku was despairing of getting Yuna to quit the pilgrimage. Tidus seemed to think they would find what they needed in Zanarkand, but Rikku wasn't so sure. That night, they looked over the dark ruins of the city, and one by one they all gave silent encouragement to Yuna. She went off to her tent with Tidus, Auron and Lulu to his tent, leaving Rikku, Wakka, and Kimahri around the fire. Rikku stared at the flames, and then looked up as a pair of large blue-gray hairy feet stopped in her field of vision. "What can I do for you, Kimahri?" she asked, wearily. "Rikku can do nothing for Kimahri. Rikku and Wakka can do much for each other. Kimahri will watch the camp." He handed her the Glorious Targe and said, "Rikku be careful of fiends." She smiled at him, and held her hand out to Wakka, who took it and whispered, "Time for a walk, ya?"

They walked toward the Save Sphere, hand in hand, knowing it was the safest place where they could be alone. They had no sooner gotten there than Rikku hurled herself at Wakka, wrapping her limbs around him, kissing him for all she was worth. She kissed his lips, his face, his neck, anywhere she could reach before he let out a muffled, "Stop! Rikku, what are you doing?" She backed away, hurt but trying not to show, it and put on her playful face. "If you don't know what I'm doing, Wakka, I'm doing it wrong." She tried hard to conceal the rejection she felt but he had become a lot less oblivious the last few days… he spotted it right away. And he got serious. "Rikku, that was not only_ not_ done wrong, it was done as right as I've ever experienced. Or even heard of, ya? I just… I've never – you know – never… ah… " She rescued him. "Neither have I, Wakka. But I want to. With you, so… maybe we could learn together?" She drew him down to the ground near the Save Sphere, and began again, much more slowly this time.

She started with his lips, and he responded by gently kissing her back. She tasted so sweet… he whispered her name and slid his mouth around to her ear; under the little braids she wore. She sighed in contentment and let her head fall back against his supporting arm. She breathed his name and let her arms go around his neck, pulling him close. He groaned at the feeling of her against him, and she moaned, feeling his heart jump against hers and his breaths grow uneven on her neck. "Wakka… please, love me. I need to feel cherished before I can face tomorrow. Please." He pulled back to look into her spiral-pupiled green eyes with his deep brown. Hers spoke to him with the sheen of tears and he gathered her close again, kissing her gently on the lips.

Kimahri stood by the fire, alert for fiend activity. The people of his birth were gone, assuming Seymour was telling the truth. But his true people – his family – were here with him.


	5. The End

**Matchmaking**

It was all over. All the tears had been shed; all the fights had been won. Auron was gone. Tidus was gone, but Yuna wouldn't believe it. Rikku knew she'd help Yuna in her quest to find him. She wasn't worried about Yuna; Yuna had faith in her beliefs, in spite of all that had happened. She _was_ worried about Wakka and Lulu though. They both seemed kind of at sea without Yuna's pilgrimage as a goal to complete. They had – to her eyes – loved each other since long before she had met them, but without the unifying impetus of the pilgrimage, they didn't know what to do. So, she decided, she'd help them along a little.

"Lulu? Why didn't you marry Wakka a long time ago?" She said this in her perky-innocent way so as to set the older woman at ease. "I mean, you've loved him for years, you know? So why didn't you ever hook up?" Lulu paused and turned to look at her. "I… couldn't. It was almost more than I could bear to Guard Yuna, knowing she would die. If I had been with Wakka… and he had been the one to become Sin, I… I couldn't have borne it… it would have broken me…" She trailed off.

Rikku grinned cheerfully at her. "Want me to feel him out, see what he thinks? I'm happy to do it." Lulu gave a half-laugh. "I take it then that your relationship is not the deathless love of song and story?" Rikku got serious. "No more so than yours with Sir Auron." The Black Mage looked thoughtful. "Hmmm… I see your point. Auron and I… we were each what the other needed at the time. And for the record, Rikku, I think you were exactly what Wakka needed at the time, both on a personal and a spiritual level. I hope he was what you needed too." Rikku smiled. "He was. Someone to lean on, you know?"

"I know."

Rikku walked between Yuna and Wakka, with Kimahri and Lulu behind them. "Yunie, can I go with you on your quest to find Tidus? I'd be lots of help." Yuna smiled at her. "I know you would, Rikku. Of course you may. I'd be glad to have you with me." Wakka glanced at them, surprised. "You goin' somewhere, Rikku? I thought you were comin' back to Besaid…" She smiled brightly at him. "We all are for the time being at least, until Yunie and I can get supplies for our search, right, cousin?" Yuna smiled at the younger girl again. "Right." Wakka felt confused. He wasn't in love with Rikku, but he was a little hurt that she just took it as given that she wasn't sticking around.

He sighed, there in his tent that night. The woman he truly loved had been in his life as long as he could remember. He had felt horribly guilty for his feelings when she was as good as engaged to his brother Chappu, and then with pilgrimages and all, he could never find the right way to tell her. He heard a soft scratching noise at the flap of his tent and said, "Ya, come on in."

It was Rikku. She looked unusually serious and he was instantly alarmed. "Is everyone okay? Is there something wrong with L… with Yuna?" She simply kissed him resoundingly on the lips and laughed. "If I had any doubts about your feelings for Lulu, I don't now, not with that reaction. You love her. You have for years, haven't you?" He stared at her. "How… how did you know that?" She laughed at him. "It's obvious to anyone with eyes to see, Wakka. 'Sall right; she feels the same way about you, and has since shortly after Chappu died." He was completely dumbfounded. How on earth could she know all this? "But… but… Rikku, she and Auron, and you and me…"

Rikku sobered instantly. "From what she's said, she and Auron – they were... they were a comfort to each other. Kinda like you and me, you know? A friend, a lover, a… someone you want to keep close in the dark. But not the undying love of her life, you know? " She looked at him pleadingly. "Go to her, Wakka. She needs you now." He looked at her, and slowly got up from his cross-legged position on the floor, drawing her up with him. "You're a good friend, Rikku. I dunno how you knew all that, ya? But you're a good friend to me and Lu." He hugged her tight, then opened the tent flap. "Thanks," he said, disappearing in the direction of Lulu's tent.

Rikku stretched and lifted the flap to go back to her own tent. She felt a little lonely, but she knew what she had done was the right thing to do. They had loved each other for a very long time, and it was about time they admitted it to each other. She looked up as Kimahri loomed before her. "Wakka is right. Rikku is good friend. Kimahri sees this." She smiled. "We're not just friends. We're family. It's who we are."

**Four Months Later…**

"Rikku, we got a sphere from Wakka! Let's go view it in our room!" Rikku grinned; Yuna was cute when she got all excited. It was like all the seriousness she had to have as a Summoner had melted away in the past few months. "Sure," she hollered, banging on the engine with her wrench, "Just let me tighten this… one… bolt. There!" She wiped the grease off her fingers onto a rag she kept handy, and joined Yuna in the room they shared. They set the sphere on the viewer and sat back to watch it.

There was no picture at first, just Wakka's voice:"Hey, Rikku, Yuna. It's Wakka. Is this thing on? I can never get the hang of… eh, there it goes." The picture came on, jumped around a bit before it settled on Wakka, with his home on Besaid Island behind him. "Anyway, um… Rikku? I just wanna say… you were right. About everything. Me and Lu, we're gettin' married in a couple months… now I should wait for a few minutes so you and Yuna can squeal and hug each other and stuff, ya? I'm learnin'." The girls both burst out laughing at this; squealing and hugging was exactly what they were doing. He _was_ learning. "So, I wanted to invite you to the wedding, it's in a couple months… did I already say that? I think I did." The girls were all smiles as they watched Lulu glide out of the house behind him into the picture. "Why don't I take it from here, Wakka? I can give them all the details." He grinned at her and waved at the sphere recorder. "Bye girls. Hope I see you at the wedding!" He kissed Lulu and left the picture.

Lulu looked at the recording sphere in such a way that she seemed to be looking directly into their eyes. "Yuna, I hope you can come to the wedding. If your ship isn't ready, maybe Cid could give you a ride? And Rikku? You were so right, about all of it. Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts." Rikku sighed happily; she was glad it had all worked out for them. When Yuna said, "We'll go," Rikku could only nod in agreement. "Of course," she said, "We're family".

**Fin**


End file.
